Instant Insights: Soil contaminants

This collection features four peer-reviewed reviews on major contaminants in agricultural soils.

The first chapter discusses emerging technologies for remediating soil polluted with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon and their contamination routes. The chapter also addresses techniques for their identification and tracking, persistence and bioaccumulation in the soil and risks to and effects on human health and soil health.

The second chapter provides a comprehensive overview of the pathways through which antibiotics reach the soil, the processes that influence their fate within the soil and the techniques and efforts used to predict their behaviour and fate. The chapter also offers insights from specific case studies and discusses future research directions to address environmental challenges.

The third chapter addresses the risks associated with using treated wastewater in irrigation systems for crop production, including an elevation in soil water osmotic pressure, the addition of toxic ions and organic contaminants to the soil and the deterioration of the physical and hydraulic properties of soil.

The final chapter reviews the impact of heavy metal contamination on soil health, focussing on its effects on soil biogeochemical processes, nutrient cycling and soil functions in crop production, environmental quality and food security. The chapter also discusses common indicators of soil contamination and remediation techniques.